About White Tea
White Tea Video Podcast
About 1,100 years ago the Da Bai Hao (Big White Hair) bush was first mentioned in Chinese literature, but the entire crop went
to making green tea. Not until somewhere between 1772 and 1782 was white tea produced. The process was developed by the Xiao family in Jiang Yang in northern Fujian and quickly spread to Fuding, Zheng He and Song Xi. Still, not until the early nineteenth century did the evolution of the Da Bai Hao bush produce enough buds to make Silver Needle as its own distinct tea. There are many white tea imitators; but true white tea only comes from the Da Bai Hao bush. While green tea is the most popular tea in China many of the world’s best-known tea experts consider white tea to be even finer that green tea.
One of the big differences between determining between green and white tea is how the tea is processed. To make white tea the pickers pick the bud and the leaf together and then separated it into the three general grades creating the three types of white tea, Silver Needle, Bai Mu Dan (Preferred Peony), and Shou Mei. Unlike green tea production which is exposed to relatively high temperatures to remove moisture, white tea is dried naturally using sunlight or lower temperatures in doors helping to preserve tea polyphenols. The preferred method is drying by the sun which occurs very quickly. Conversely, it takes about forty hours of careful monitoring to dry at low temperatures in doors. Recently white tea has become extremely popular due to its health benefits. This has resulted in tea producers from as far away as India drying tea naturally and calling it “white tea.” This is incorrect. Even Puer tea leaves are dried in the sun as its first step in production making the buds very white, but this is also not considered white tea. Remember while the leaves from the Da Bai Hao bush can be processed to make both green and white tea, no other tea bush leaves can be used to make true white tea.
In Chinese Medicine, white tea is thought to be a very effective cooling tea. It is popular for treating skin problems from acne to Chicken Pox. We also know from Western medicine that it is very rich in antioxidants. The leaf of this tea ages well and local people like to drink 4-6 year old white tea. Of the three types, Silver Needle doesn’t age as well and while it can be brewed with boiling water without damage, it is better to brew at cooler temperatures, between 160 to 180 degrees Fahrenheit (80 to 90 degrees Centigrade). Overall, white tea has a delicate appearance and delightful gentle aroma. It yields a pleasant, mellow taste that is both subtle and sweet.
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